Going shooting at the range is fun. Purchasing your own gun is even more fun. But if you really want to show your enthusiasm for firearms, the best way to do it is by reloading your own ammunition.
Reloading lets you save money on ammunition while giving you high-quality loads. It teaches you valuable lessons about firearms mechanics–and may even be a great father-son bonding experience. If you’ve never done it, though, the process may seem a touch too esoteric.
Fortunately, cleaning rifle brass and preparing it for reloading is a straightforward process. To make things simple, we’ll help you get started. Keep reading as we cover 10 tips for cleaning and reloading your brass.
1. Purchase High-Quality Rifle Brass from a Reputable Rifle Brass Manufacturer
Brass is the metal of choice for ammunition cartridges for good reason. This metal is malleable and rust-resistant, but also strong enough to resist the high pressure inside a gun. It’s so strong, in fact, that you can reuse old brass shells for multiple firings.
Go to any public outdoor range, and you’ll see that the ground is littered with old brass shells. But hold on just a second! This brass is dirty, corroded, and possibly bent or structurally infirm.
Always make sure to use high-quality brass for reloading, period. You can even save money by buying in bulk. This eliminates any risk of reloading a shell that is not fit for firing.
Choose reputable rifle brass manufacturers with good ratings. You want to be sure every casing you buy is ready to fire.
2. Purchase the Right Casings
It’s easy to mistake casings sometimes. Many calibers are very close in size and shape. Discerning a .223 from a 5.56 will be virtually impossible.
Take extra care that you purchase the right casing for your rifle. Choose the wrong one, and your gun might not fire–or might damage itself. Either way, this puts you at risk.
Many modern AR-15s can handle both .223 and 5.56, but it never hurts to check. Make sure you buy from a vendor that clearly delineates between these similar calibers.
3. Keep a Clean, Organized Workspace
Reloading can seem complicated at first. You have trays for casings, presses, tumblers, and scales. You may have cleaner, gunpowder, and polishing medium all in the same place.
Make sure your reloading table is clean and organized to streamline the process. This avoids any risk of mixups with the wrong calibers or materials.
If possible, buy a dedicated reloading bench. Some come with built-in components that make reloading a breeze. Locate this table in a safe place, away from children.
It goes without saying that you need to store gunpowder and cleaner in a dry, combustion-free place. You do not want a fire to start when a stray spark hits your powder.
4. Purchase a Decent Tumbler for Cleaning Rifle Brass
To clean your brass before you reload it, you need to know how to tumble rifle brass.
You can do this with either a rotary or vibratory tumbler. These are plug-in machines that will clean, deburr, and polish your brass. They work in a way similar to rock tumblers.
You’ll want to do this in the garage where no one can hear it. Both tumblers will require several hours to fully prepare your shells. Vibratory tumblers are especially loud, although they do finish the job in record time.
Make sure you have the proper media for your shells, such as treated corn or walnuts. Using the wrong media, or too little, can make your tumbler less effective.
5. Get Yourself a Good Brass Cleaner
Tumblers are one method for cleaning brass, but for a thorough clean you’ll need chemicals. You can make them at home, or purchase them from a firearms dealer near you.
For all its impressive qualities, brass gets dirty easily. It accumulates carbon buildup, powder residue, and any other grit. This fouling will ruin a bullet’s performance and could jam your gun.
Your casings need time to soak in this solution to remove all the gunk. You need to clean and dry the shells. Inspect them to make sure the cleaner did its job.
6. Measure Cartridges with Digital Calipers
Every time you shoot brass cartridges, they stretch just a little. This stretching is fine, and you can reload the casing multiple times. But at some point, this gets to be too much and the casing may become too stretched out for further reloading.
You can purchase the tools to turn the neck and resize the shell to default specs, but this is tedious. The best way to avoid this is to purchase certified once-fired brass. Then there’s no need to keep track of how many times you’ve fired individual shells.
7. Take Extra Care With Primer Insertion
The primer will be the deciding factor in whether or not you have a successful fire. The powder may be good and the bullet may be inserted properly. All of that goes to waste if the primer doesn’t do its job.
A misaligned centerfire primer can cause the rifle pin to strike off-center. The pin will put a dent in the rim, but not the primer. This will stop your gun dead in the water and may make you question the integrity of the rest of your ammo.
Primer insertion takes practice, and you may initially feel as if you’re putting more pressure than is necessary. Give yourself time to experiment with a few throwaway rounds.
Or, you can avoid all the hassle and purchase primed brass casings.
8. Measure the Powder Out Exactly
This is perhaps the most important step of them all. It is crucial that you get the powder measurement as close to the grain as you possibly can. Failure to do so could result in poorly performing ammunition.
Every weapon is designed for a specific type of caliber. Every caliber requires a specific grain of gunpowder. Too much or too little over the specified amount will lead to a near-guaranteed malfunction.
The reason why is that the rifle’s action is calibrated to its ideal grain, allowing a full action cycle. That means that:
- The bullet leaves the barrel
- The casing gets a proper ejection
- The hammer cocks back to the home position
- The mechanism strips a fresh round from the magazine and locks it in the chamber
Too much grain puts undue strain on these components, wearing them down or possibly breaking them. Too little does not give them the pressure they need to do a full action cycle.
Remember, guns operate under the pressure of expanding gasses. More gunpowder means more gasses, and therefore more pressure. Just a bit too much powder creates a pressure excess that your weapon likely can’t handle.
9. Seat the Bullet With Care
Seating the bullet is the final step, and perhaps one of the funniest parts. Your first time will be a bit nerve-wracking, though.
Like with the primer, it may feel like you’re putting an inordinate amount of pressure on the casing. Brass is strong, but you don’t want to risk splitting it!
Take things slowly. Apply gentle, even pressure to the lever until the press runs to a stop. Once you retract it, your bullet is ready to go!
Do continue to take this step slowly. You don’t want to yank the lever when you’re in a hurry. Reloading should be a somewhat meditative process, anyway.
10. Inspect Your Final Product
While it takes quite a while to reload enough ammunition for your next visit to the range, don’t stop there. Taking the time to inspect the ammunition will save you from any risk while firing.
Inspect each round from top to bottom. Make sure there are no deformations in the bullet or casing. Ensure that the casing is straight, without dents.
Check the neck for any remaining burs and remove them. Brush off any bits of copper spalling that may be leftover from the tumbler. Use a rough cloth if necessary to clear away any rough patches.
Make sure the primer is dead-centered and fully seated in the rim. Store the ammunition in a cool, dry place that is also away from combustion sources. Make sure to inspect the ammunition again before you take it out to the range, especially if you haven’t used it in a while.
Congratulations! These are just a few small tips for how to reload your rifle brass. But with these things in mind, you’re ready to hit the reloading bench for the first time.
Find Rifle Brass for Sale With Diamond K Brass
Reloading rifle brass is a valuable experience for any gun owner. However, it is a delicate process that involves a bit of a learning curve–and plenty of patience. The most important thing you can do is purchase high-quality brass so you get a proper reload every time.
Diamond K Brass is the best place to find brand-new Starline brass, once-fired military training brass, or bulk orders. We offer a wide range of calibers for rifles and pistols. Check out our selection of rifle brass today.
